He said very few knew about Purandareswari until the 2004 elections. He said he and some other Congress leaders thought that it would be good to bring her into Congress and it was due to their efforts that she joined the party. Stating that Purandareswari was like his own sister and her husband Dr. Venkateswara Rao was a great friend, TSR said she would not contest from Visakhapatnam in next elections. He said though she is not keen on contesting from Vizag, media persons were making her say something or the other.
It may be recalled that there were reports that TSR and Purandareswari were fighting for the Vizag Lok Sabha seat. On several earlier occasions, TSR said Purandareswari is not known to people of Vizag and hence would be asked to contest from Narasarao Pet.
